BARCELONA officials yesterday backed beleaguered coach Bobby Robson to continue as coach of the Catalan giants after his side eked out a 1-0 win at the Nou Camp over Racing Santander.

The result left Barcelona six points behind league leaders and hated rivals Real Madrid, who could only manage a draw in their home game on Saturday with Betis.

After the match, Rob son asked reporters to "give me a chance" and help him win over fans who have been largely hostile to the former England boss since he replaced Dutch legend Johan Cruyff last summer.

"I am alone in the face of danger," Robson said after Luis Enrique's first half goal secured the points after another disjointed performance.

Club vice-president Johan Gaspart gave Rob son a vote of confidence saying he was a "professional who works at a club where there are enormous advantages, but also enormous disadvantages."

Gaspart was generous in his appraisal of Robson, who communicates to his players his ambitions and his enthusiasm, and that will eventually be rewarded.

"I await the day when Robson will stand before everyone with his titles and when his work will finally be recognised," Gaspart went on.

Robson had vowed on Saturday that he would honour his two-year contract despite media reports stating that he was finished at Barcelona regardless of the Santander result.

In Italy, the absence of experienced Roberto Mancini weighed heavily on Sampdoria's young shoulders yesterday as the second-placed Serie A side lost their, seven-match unbeaten record to Roma and fell five points behind leaders Juventus with the 1-2 loss.

Roma, using the counter-attack to lethal effect, went ahead in the 44th minute when Francesco Moriero fired home after a superb defence-splitting pass from Swede Jonas Thern.

After the break Sampdoria's inexperienced Matteo Sereni, the 22-year-old replacement goalkeeper for Fabrizio Ferron, dropped a corner leaving Abel Balbo with a simple tap-in.

Vincenzo Montella revived Sampdoria's hopes when he claimed his 13th goal of the season but they still lost out.

Alessandro Del Piero made sure that Juventus took maximum advantage with both goals in his side's 2-1 win over struggling Perugla.

Del Piero, left on the substitutes' bench for Italy's World Cup win over England last week, put Juventus ahead in the 37th minute from the penalty spot before scoring a superlative second in the 45th - a smooth turn and shot from just inside the area. Victory leaves Juventus five points clear at the top.

Bologna, Inter Milan, Atalanta and Parma lie a distant third on 31 points. Parma could only draw 0-0 in last night's match with bottom-placed Reggiana.

Lazio took the lead in their match with Inter through Diego Fuser's first goal of the season in the 25th minute, and then, went behind as they conceded two goals in as many minutes. Giuseppe Signori, however, spared Lazio's blushes in the 73rd minute.

After two defeats in their last three matches, Milan president Silvio Berlusconi had suggested his side needed a trip to Lourdes. Against Bologna, there were no miracles but they had their share of luck as Milan beat Bologna 2-0.

Demetrio Albertini converted a 45th minute penalty for a foul on George Weah when the Liberian looked suspiciously offside. Jesper Blomqvist sealed Milan's first victory in four matches with his first goal since joining the club from Gothenburg last November.

At Verona, Russian Andrei Kanchelskis made a disappointing debut for Fiorentina, who lost 2-1 at third-from-bottom Verona.